Polystichum whiteleggei

Polystichum whiteleggei is a fern in the family Dryopteridaceae. A former common name was heavy fern, alluding to the weight of one of the large, thick textured, fronds when fully developed. The specific epithet honours Thomas Whitelegge (1850–1927) of the Australian Museum, who collected zoological specimens on Lord Howe Island in 1887, who first noticed the fern's distinctiveness.[1]

Polystichum whiteleggei
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Class: Polypodiopsida
Order: Polypodiales
Suborder: Polypodiineae
Family: Dryopteridaceae
Genus: Polystichum
Species:
P. whiteleggei
Binomial name
Polystichum whiteleggei
Watts[1]

Description

The plant is a terrestrial or lithophytic fern. It has a short creeping rhizome with dense, dark brown, lanceolate scales. Its 3-pinnate fronds combine a 10–50 cm stipe with a lamina 15–50 cm long and 12–40 cm wide.[1]

Distribution and habitat

The fern is endemic to Australia’s subtropical Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea; it is locally common to rare on the edges and flanks of the summits of Mounts Lidgbird and Gower.[1]

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References
  1. " Polystichum whiteleggei ". Flora of Australia Online: Data derived from Flora of Australia Volume 49 (1994). Australian Biological Resources Study (ABRS). Retrieved 2014-01-30.
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